Sikorsky Will Get $1 Million Back from State

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Sikorsky Aircraft will be getting a big tax refund from the state. The state Supreme Court decided on Thursday that the state owes helicopter maker almost $1 million for denying the tax exemption the company deserved.

The judges decided unanimously that the Stratford-based subsidiary of United Technologies Corp. qualified for $916,600 in tax breaks on certain purchases from 1995 to 2002.

State officials argued that the law that refunds sales taxes to companies for aircraft manufacturing didn't apply for Sikorsky's purchases because they were for research and development, not manufacturing helicopters.

But the Supreme Court justices concluded that research and development was an integral part of Sikorsky's manufacturing so the items should be covered by the law.